FloFilz is a producer original from Belgium, but now based in Germany. He’s been releasing music for nearly a decade, working with labels like Radio Juicy, Jakarta, and Melting Pot. His last full-length album came in 2019, when he released Transit. Now he’s back with a new album, Close Distance.

The phrase “Close Distance” might not mean much to those in the states, but the phrase, which literally means “near in space or time,” translates in German to the easier to say, “nah dran.” How this relates to the album itself is that FloFilz started to work on this project right after his last album, and he had begun to make plans to travel for a lot of writing and recording sessions with different artists, to be in the same room with them. Of course, when the pandemic hit and travel restrictions went into place, things became more difficult. In November of 2020, FloFilz moved his home studio from Aachen to Berlin, and then began to work remotely as best he could, sharing files back and forth over the Internet with artists in places in like the UK and South Africa. Eventually, FloFilz was able to make to England, where he was able to have sessions and close the distance between himself and Blue Lab Beats, Alfa Mist, Summer Sons, and C. Tappin. The result is an album that works on a couple of different levels. On the one hand, you’ve got a large chunk of this album that is instrumental, representing the internal monologue of FloFilz as he worked in relative isolation for a while. These tracks are mostly downtempo, and while they don’t necessarily feel cold or dark, there is a certain moodiness and melancholy to them, like you can feel the longing for connection coming through these soulful beats. On the other hand, you’ve got these collaborative tracks where the album takes a turn and starts to cook a little bit more. It’s still fairly laid back and jazzy, but there is more warmth and energy to these tracks, like you can just feel the vibe in the room and the excitement that comes from these artistic connections. Over the course of the album, we get contributions from Alfa Mist, Blue Lab Beats, Jerome Thomas, KeepVibesNear, Summers Sons & C.Tappin, Dal & Hunter Rose. Some bring it with the vocals, other help with additional production or instrumentation, but they all bring that joy and passion that come when you work with another musician that is on your level. When you put this all together, you actually get an album that is a nice personal reflection of the past couple of really weird years. Sometimes you work through the feelings of frustration or melancholy, other times you find the joy and make connections when and where you can, because you don’t know when you’ll get to do it again.

Close Distance is a great return for FloFilz. It’s a really passionate album that he clearly spent a lot of time on and put a lot of himself into. He also does a great job of taking that deeply personal music and putting in dialogue with the exuberant joy that comes from working with musicians that you love and respect, who can help you reach that next level when you all come together.